Through ecosystem-based models and storytelling, Dr. Tate-Jones aims to facilitate authentic human connection that promotes inclusivity and equity within the scientific community. She earned her doctorate in Earth Sciences from the University of Oregon, where she studied vertebrate paleontology with a focus on the evolution of seal sea lions and walruses. During this time, however, she came to realize that much of the way the field functioned seemed to be determined by systems of oppression rather than the science itself.